Committee Legislation

Lowering Gasoline Prices to Fuel an America that Works Act (H.R. 4899)

Status: Passed the House on June 26, 2014 with a bipartisan vote of 229-185. Awaits consideration by the Senate.

The Lowering Gasoline Prices to Fuel an America that Works Act will help ease the pain at the pump by expanding production of America’s own energy resources.

According to AAA, the national average price of gasoline is $3.68 – double what it was when President Obama took office. High gasoline prices further squeeze middle class families, increase the costs of goods and services such as groceries, and force businesses to cut costs and raise prices. Rising gasoline prices are a drain on our economy and families shouldn’t have to choose between filling up their cars and putting food on the table.

The Lowering Gasoline Prices to Fuel an America that Works Act would harness the oil and natural gas resources we have right here at home. Responsibly developing these resources not only addresses rising energy costs, but helps create good-paying American jobs, strengthens our economy, and improves our energy security.

H.R. 4899 expands U.S energy production and provides families with relief at the pump:

Increases Offshore Production. Since taking office, President Obama has restricted new offshore energy production, canceled lease sales, and locked-up over85 percent of our offshore areas. In stark contrast to President Obama’s no-new-drilling, no-new-jobs plan, H.R. 4899 proposes a drill-smart, job-creation plan that would require the Administration to move forward with new offshore energy production in areas containing the most oil and natural gas resources – including the Atlantic Coast and Pacific Coast. It also requires the Secretary of the Interior to conduct oil and natural gas lease sales that have been delayed or cancelled by the Obama Administration and implements a fair, equitable revenue sharing program for all coastal states. This would generate over $1 billion in new revenue over ten years according to the Congressional Budget Office and could create up to 1.2 million jobs long-term.

Increases Onshore Production. H.R. 4899would streamline government roadblocks and bureaucratic red-tape that block and delay onshore American energy production. The bill would reform the leasing process for onshore oil and natural gas projects on federal lands to eliminate unnecessary delays; reform the process for energy permitting, once a lease is in hand, to encourage the timely development of our federal resources; set clear rules for the development of U.S. oil shale resources; establish common sense steps to create an all-of-the-above American energy plan using our vast federal resources; and modernize and update the bidding process for oil and natural gas leases by allowing Internet-based auctions.

Increases Alaskan Production. The bill wouldensure that oil and natural gas resources in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska (NPR-A) are developed and transported in a timely, efficient manner. The NPR-A was specifically established as a petroleum reserve in 1923. According to conservative estimates by the U.S. Geological Survey, there are over 2.7 billion barrels of oil and 114.36 trillion cubic feet of natural gas in the NPR-A.